Just before the Green Bay Packers’ Monday Night Football matchup at Lambeau Field against the reigning Super Bowl champions Philadelphia Eagles, news broke that the New York Giants had fired head coach Brian Daboll. It was not exactly a shocking development, as Daboll was sitting in a hot seat for a long time, but his firing still created a lot of buzz, as expected.
New York’s decision to let him go came on the heels of a loss on Sunday to the Chicago Bears that dropped the Giants to a 2-8 record.
With Daboll out, the Giants are looking for someone to fill the head coaching role. Could that be one of the coaches right now in Green Bay?
Packers’ Hafley a potential candidate as Daboll’s successor in New York?
Oct 20, 2024; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley is shown before their game against the Houston Texans at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark Hoffman/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images
Green Bay defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley has been among the many names floated in a recent article on ESPN, as a potential head coaching candidate for the Giants.
ViaJordan Raanan and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN:
He could lean on popular coaching trees such as those of the Rams (OC Mike LaFleur, DC Chris Shula, passing game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase, Vikings OC Wes Phillips) and the Chiefs (OC Matt Nagy, DC Steve Spagnuolo — a dose of nostalgia from the Tom Coughlin days).
To shore up the defense, emerging coordinators such as Jeff Hafley (Packers), Jesse Minter (Chargers), Kelvin Sheppard (Lions) and Aden Durde (Seahawks) would be good to explore. On offense, Todd Monken (Ravens) has been a fixture on the scene and Jim Bob Cooter (Colts) and Klint Kubiak (Seahawks) are making their mark this year.
Hafley has an intriguing connection with the Giants, at least geographically, as he is from Montvale, New Jersey. He was also part of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights football squad’s coaching staff before.
So far in the 2025 NFL season, Hafley, who is in his second year with the Packers, appears to be doing a solid job as the Packers defense’s architect. To date, Green Bay is seventh in the league with just 19.6 points allowed per game and fifth with 287.2 total yards per contest.
Green Bay defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley is shown during a joint practice with the Seattle Seahawks Thursday, August 21, 2025 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
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